Jimmy Yu: "Venerable Sheng Yen and the Construction of a New Chan School in Taiwan"
Abstract:
The late Master Shengyan Huikong (1930-2009; hereafter, Sheng Yen) was revered as a Buddhist educator, a lineage holder of both the Linji and Caodong lines of Chan, and the progenitor of a newly constructed Chan school within Chinese Buddhism called the Dharma Drum Lineage (Fagu zong 法鼓宗). His Chan is a synthesis and reformulation of the foundational teachings of the Three Studies in the early Buddhism in combination with traditional Chan teachings. The aim of this reformulation is nothing short of ensuring the survival of Chinese Buddhism in the modern age, but the process of this reformulation was complex and gradual. This talk will focus on the process and conditions which led to his establishment of the Dharma Drum Lineage.
Speaker's Bio
Jimmy Yu (Ph.D. '08, Princeton University, Department of Religion) is an Associate Professor at Florida State University. He teaches courses in East Asian religious traditions, with an emphasis in Chinese Buddhism and religions. His research interests include the history of the body in Chinese religions, Buddhist material culture, Chan/Zen Buddhisms, and the formation of modern Chinese Buddhism.